Our second full day in Helen, GA, we had to wake up very early! We had a train to catch! We went on the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway in Blue Ridge, GA. The train left at 10AM, and parking is very limited, especially accessible parking. So we wanted to arrive at 9AM. And they were a little over an hour away, so we tried to leave at 7:30AM!!!! Brad and Tam normally sleep until about 11, so this was a huge change for them. I usually wake up around 6-7, so I was fine.
I was supposed to drive to the train, but at the last minute, Brad offered to drive since he knows I hate driving on mountain roads. I didn’t know how much he was going to save me at that point– I just thought it was a nice gesture.
Not too far out of town, we got on a really steep windy road. We’re talking a 12% incline with sharp twists and turns. First up the hill, and then down the hill (or should we say mountain!). We were on that part of the road for about half an hour, and I literally thought the van would die. It was making all kinds of strange sounds and I was sure we would blow an engine or something! But Brad was super calm. It is a good thing he drove, and not me because I would have been panicking!
Luckily the second half of the trip was easy, and we made it and found parking close to the train.
We tried to go up to the ticket counter as we were instructed to with the tickets we bought ahead of time, But the outdoor counter was closed, and we had to go inside. There were a bunch of steps to get inside. We were there looking at the steps with a lady using a walker. Tam went up and asked about an accessible entrance, and turns out there was a ramp on the other side of the building. So we went around the sidewalk around the building, only to find a large step to get off the sidewalk on the other side! So we had to go all the way back and take the street! Sheesh!
And then when we finally got up there, they said we didn’t have to after all, and they’d scan my tickets at the train itself. Sigh.
We also noticed the gift shop was up a step, another sigh.
But the train itself was awesome! They had an electric lift so it was super easy to get on the train! Here are videos of me and Brad getting on the train.
Brad got some pictures of the trains, and us getting on and sitting on the bench waiting to start our journey. Brad stayed in his wheelchair and I sat on the bench next to Tam. We were able to look out on the “river” side of the train, which had better views. Our car never filled all the way up, so everyone was on the “river” side!
Below are pictures of the train, us getting on, and pictures of us waiting around. I have Rose, my Cabbage Patch Kid, with me.
The train trip itself lasted about an hour. It was a pretty slow train, going about 10-15 mph. And we were in an open air car, so the windows were all without glass. It was perfect weather, with just enough of a chill to be comfortable sitting in the sun for an hour. Brad got several pictures of Felix enjoying the train, and of the beautiful scenery we were passing.
We passed the river with lots of multi-million dollar houses, and lots of beautiful forest land. We saw fishermen, deer, and interesting statues like of Bigfoot and buffalo. I started to get a migraine, so Tam went and got me some coffee. Oh and did I mention it was Tam’s first time on a train?! She handled walking on a train with hot coffee and hot chocolate very well!
We had a great guide who told us all kinds of interesting facts as we rode along.
Below is a video of Felix on the train, followed by pictures of our trip.
When we arrived in the small towns that were our destination, we had a scary unload from the train. Due to the track design, it was very high up and the lift was a bit scary! Here is a video of me coming off the lift.
The towns we went to were twin towns, one in Georgia, and one in Tennessee. They had a blue line down the street where you could be in both states at the same time!
We walked to Tennessee for lunch, where we ate with the woman using a walker from earlier, then back to Georgia to visit a General Store and the train gift shop. Brad got pictures of me getting off the train with Felix and Rose, and of us walking around town and visiting the shops.
Tam ended up finding a cool shirt, and we got some good salt water taffy for the train trip back.
After two hours there, we got back on the train for the ride back. Since our car was only half full, we got to sit on the river side again, and see more beautiful scenery! Brad got more pictures of it on the way back, and some pictures of some train related logos etc.
It was a great trip! We had so much fun! Tam loved her first time on a train, and I loved being on a train, since I really enjoy them.
But then we had to get back to the cabin! Tam offered to drive home, even though Brad said he would do it. What Tam didn’t tell us is that she had never driven mountain roads before! If we had known that, we would have insisted Brad drive because these mountain roads were a doozy!
But Tam didn’t tell us, so there we were, on the super steep and windy roads with Tam almost having a panic attack driving up and down them! She was flooring it uphill and the car was only going about 20 mph. It was very scary! But Tam and Brad are both such good drivers that even though I was in the back seat both times, I never got car sick.
Boy were we happy when that half hour was over! We went back to the cabin and just relaxed the rest of the night, playing some Farkle on the porch and chilling from our busy day! I think that was the night that Tam cooked us some yummy chicken and vegetables and we chowed down and were very happy with our day!
From here on out, our vacation was much less stressful than the train day, thank goodness! Stay tuned for more stories about our adventures!